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Your support helps us to tell the storyFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.Your support makes all the difference.CloseRead moreEarlier this year, Patrick was sleeping in a field. He had nowhere else to go after fleeing an abusive ex-partner. After years spent sofa surfing following a falling out with his parents over his drug use, which saw him kicked out of the family home, Patrick found himself with nowhere to turn.“I never really had an address or somewhere to call home,” Patrick told The Independent. “I came down to London after leaving my parent’s house. I was sofa surfing for a while, then I moved in with an ex-partner who was abusive. “But early this year, I thought, no, I can’t do it anymore. It’s not healthy for me. I ended up sleeping in a field.”Patrick is one of 136,000 18- to 24-year-olds who faced homelessness in the past year, according to the latest estimates. Around 1 in 52 young people are homeless or at risk of homelessness in the UK, according to network of charities EveryYouth.But Patrick was fortunate. With the help of a local youth homelessness charity the Amber Foundation, he was quickly able to get back on his feet.EveryYouth CEO Nick Connolly has written to Angela Rayner calling for youth homelessness services to be protected from the NIC increase More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.Your support makes all the difference.CloseRead moreWatch as Sir Keir Starmer delivered Labour’s major “plan for change” speech on Thursday (5 December).The prime minister addressed several milestones during his speech at Pinewood Studios, including raising living standards, ending hospital backlogs and putting more police on the beat.Sir Keir promised a named, contactable police officer for every neighbourhood in England and Wales, who will be focused on dealing with local issues.The prime minister described the move as “a relief to millions of people scared to walk the streets they call home”, and promised a range of policing reforms to improve performance alongside £100m to support neighbourhood policing.In a speech billed as setting out the “next phase” of his government, the PM detailed ambitious “milestones” for achieving the five missions laid out in Labour’s manifesto. More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.Your support makes all the difference.CloseRead moreMPs have taken a historic step towards legalising assisted dying in England and Wales, by voting in favour of a bill that would support terminally ill adults with a life expectancy of six months or less to end their lives.After five hours of intense and heartfelt debate, in which some members of parliament were brought to tears, the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill was passed in the House of Commons with 330 voting in favour and 275 against. The result was a bigger majority than many were predicting, after similar legislation was roundly defeated in 2015.Under the terms of the bill, a terminally ill adult with a life expectancy of six months or less could seek assistance to end their life, provided that two doctors and a High Court judge approve their decision. Kim Leadbeater opens the debate for the second reading More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.Your support makes all the difference.CloseRead moreMPs have voted in favour of the assisted dying bill paving the way for historic change not seen since abortion was legalised in 1967. After five hours of intense and heartfelt debate, in which some members of parliament were brought to tears, the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill was passed in the House of Commons with 330 voting in favour and 275 against. The result was a bigger majority than many were predicting after similar legislation was soundly defeated in 2015.Under the terms of the Bill, terminally ill adults with a prognosis of six months or less could seek assistance to end their life, provided two doctors and a High Court judge confirm their decision. MPs were given a “free vote” on the issue, meaning they could vote according to their conscience and not along party lines. Kim Leadbeater opens the debate on the second reading More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.Your support makes all the difference.CloseRead moreWatch live as MPs vote whether or not to legalise assisted dying on Friday (29 November).If passed, it could lead to the most significant reform in British society since the abolition of the death penalty in 1965 and the introduction of abortion two years later.The divisive issue is being debated in the Commons on Friday for the first time in almost a decade – having been voted down by MPs in 2015.Five hours have been set aside for MPs to air their views on Kim Leadbeater’s Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, and a vote must be called before 2.30pm otherwise the Bill is highly unlikely to make any further progress through Parliament.Ms Leadbeater said she is hopeful this “major social reform” will pass this first stage in the process to becoming law.Encouraging or assisting suicide is against the law in England and Wales, with a maximum jail sentence of 14 years.Ms Leadbeater has said the current law is not fit for purpose and her proposals would allow terminally ill adults in the two nations with less than six months to live to end their lives, subject to the approval of two doctors and a High Court judge. More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.Your support makes all the difference.CloseRead moreWatch live as Sir Keir Starmer holds a news conference on net migration.The prime minister will hold a press conference on migration in Downing Street at 3pm on Thursday (28 November).Sir Keir is expected to respond to the latest data, which revealed net migration to the UK hit a record 906,000 in 2023.The ONS figures indicate net migration has since dropped by 20 percent and stood at 728,000 in the latest period for the year to June 2024.A total of 133,409 people were waiting for an initial decision on an asylum application in the UK at the end of September 2024.This is up 12 percent from 118,882 at the end of June 2024, but down year on year by 19% from 165,411 at the end of September 2023.The number peaked at 175,457 at the end of June 2023, which was the highest figure since current records began in 2010.The number of people waiting more than six months for an initial decision stood at 83,888 at the end of September, up from 76,268 at the end of June, but down year-on-year by 33% from 124,461.Home secretary Yvette Cooper said: “In the space of four years net migration rose by almost five times to a record high – that shows the serious damage that was done to the immigration system, the lack of proper controls in place, and the over-reliance on a big increase in overseas recruitment.“Net migration is still four times higher than it was at the beginning of the last parliament and we are clear that it needs to come down.” More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.Your support makes all the difference.CloseRead moreWatch live as Rachel Reeves delivers her CBI speech on Monday (25 November) as the chancellor insists there is “no alternative” to tax rises.Earlier today, the chancellor was accused of catching firms “off guard” and undermining investment and jobs, the head of one of Britain’s leading business groups said.Rain Newton-Smith, chief executive of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), said profit is “not a dirty word” because it underpins firms’ ability to invest, but the Government’s actions have hampered that.The Chancellor is expected to tell the organisation there is “no alternative” to tax rises as she holds firm against criticism of the £25 billion increase in firms’ national insurance contributions (NICs).Ms Newton-Smith welcomed the new political and economic stability offered by the government after the turbulence of the Conservative years, but condemned the way firms have been blindsided by the increase in NICs and the lowering of the threshold at which they start to be paid.She warned it will make it more difficult to achieve the economic growth sought by Ms Reeves and Sir Keir Starmer. More

Your support helps us to tell the storyFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.Your support makes all the difference.CloseRead moreWatch live as defence secretary John Healey faces MPs on Thursday (21 November) as Ukraine fired British missiles at Russia for the first time.The British-made missile – which Kyiv has been lobbying to use beyond Russia’s borders for months – was fired at Russia on Wednesday, with images published by Russian military bloggers purporting to show Storm Shadow fragments in Russia’s Kursk region, beyond Ukraine’s northeastern border.Meanwhile, Russia today launched an intercontinental ballistic missile from Astrakhan region during a morning attack, Ukraine’s air force said.Ukraine’s military also said it shot down six Kh-101 cruise missiles launched by Russia during the attack.The Russian attack targeted enterprises and critical infrastructure in the central-eastern city of Dnipro, the air force said, at a time of escalating moves in the 33-month-old war launched by Russia in Ukraine.It was unclear from the statement what the intercontinental ballistic missile targeted and whether it caused any damage.The missiles have a range of thousands of kilometres and can be used for delivering nuclear warheads, though they can also have conventional warheads. More